Holidays with Damian
by FeatherxxDreams
Summary: Dick takes it upon himself to educate Damian about American holidays. Pre-slash, fluff, family, gen. Series of drabbles. (7/7)
1. Intro

**This used to be 3 separate stories (Something Worth Keeping, Adequate, and Appreciation). Since I am going to be writing these when I hit a roadblock in L&R and the other stories I have, I decided to just compile them into one big story. **

**So here is Holidays with Damian.**


	2. Valentine's Day

**Title:** Something Worth Keeping

**Rating:** G

**Character/Pairing:** Dick Grayson and Damian Wayne

**Notes:** pre-slash fluff, if there is such a thing. No romantic relationship at this point.

**Word Count:** 506

**Summary:** In which Dick likes the holiday that Damian is currently burning at the stake, or something to that degree.

* * *

A few months after Damian had been assimilated into public school, Dick Grayson realized they might have had a problem. He was visiting the manor on Alfred's insistence that he swing by for Valentine's Day dinner, and to drop off the usual familial valentines, when he found Damian sitting in the middle of the floor in the library, roaring fire before him. He decided not to wonder why Damian had bothered to drag the fire pit into the library when there was a perfectly good fireplace in the TV room, and instead sauntered over to the family's most recent addition.

"What've you got there, Damian?"

He watched as Damian dug a pink card out of his nearby backpack. The boy took the chocolate piece taped to the paper off, unwrapping and eating it before throwing the card in the fire.

"Valentines," Was the bored answer.

"You're burning Valentines?"

"Don't sound so horrified, Grayson. My class was forced to get cards for everyone." Damian repeated the previous process with a new, maroon-ish card, "They don't mean anything."

"Sure they do, Dami!" Dick sat down near Damian's rather larger wrapper pile, "Girls put love into valentines, especially at your age! They're extremely important!"

Damian picked out another card, "Not to me."

Dick frowned at his former Robin, shaking his head, "How long have you been burning these anyway? It's almost time for dinner."

"Hours."

Dick laughed at Damian's angry growl. He could perfectly picture the little prince sitting there in front of the fire since school let out, pouting at the flames.

"Well maybe you should take a break. Let your fire-induced tendencies rest?"

"If I stop, I won't be done by patrol."

"Really? How many do you have?"

Damian leveled a glare with his backpack, "Enough."

"Enough? Very vague, Dami." Dick pulled the small card reserved for Damian out of his pocket, waving it in the air. "I hope you have room for one more."

Damian eyed the valentine with suspicion. Dick swore he saw a flash of surprise in Damian's eyes before the walls were up again. Regardless, the boy took the card, setting it in his lap. Dick stood up to stretch, going up on his toes before lowering back to the hardwood. "I would clean up the evidence when you finish, Dami. I'm gonna go find Alfred and help with the food."

Damian remained quiet as Dick left. He turned his attention to the red-colored valentine in his lap. The front was covered in glitter and ribbon, obviously store-bought and for a female. He opened the card, reading the simple print on the inside.

I love you, Valentine

Dick had also drawn obnoxiously cute hearts surrounding the words with a white sharpie. Damian closed the card with a -tt-, making a move to toss the card in the fire like the rest. He stopped at the last second, retracting his hand and holding the card downwards. "…ridiculous."

With a slightly lighter heart, he set Dick's card down next to him, before resuming his massacre of Valentine's Day.


	3. Mother's Day

**Title:** Appreciation

**Rating:** G

**Character/Pairing:** Dick Grayson and Damian Wayne

**Notes:** pre-slash fluff, if there is such a thing. No romantic relationship at this point.

**Word Count:** 577

**Summary:** In which Damian doesn't do Mother's Day very traditionally, or something to that degree.

* * *

"Oh my God, Damian, what are you doing now?"

Damian didn't look up from his…_project_. The counter of the kitchen was covered in construction paper, glitter, glue, and something that could have been red paint or blood, Dick didn't want to ask.

"Working on something, Grayson," Damian replied bluntly.

"Yeah, yeah I see that," Dick slowly sat on the barstool next to Damian. "Uh, what exactly _are_ you working on?"

"A...an appreciation card," Damian decided.

"Appreciation? From you? Who's the lucky girl?" Dick teased.

"Mother," Damian replied airily.

"Moth-? Talia? You're making Talia a…Mother's Day card?" Dick tilted his head. Mother's Day was coming up, wasn't it? And he supposed sending it across the world required a little time beforehand.

"Pennysworth advised me to do so. He said Mother might appreciate it, though I don't think Mother will care," Damian said, "We didn't celebrate Mother's Day."

"Why not?"

"Why should we have? It's a simpleton's holiday."

"Well, actually, it isn't. The tradition of honoring Mother's dates back to Egyptian mythology with Isis. America just reinvented it when we colonized," Dick said.

"So the stores could sell overpriced cards and candy, yes, I'm aware."

"No, so we could better honor our Mothers," Dick corrected.

Damian made a little –_tt_- noise, clearly disagreeing with Dick. Dick huffed, trying to think of a better way to explain. "When my family celebrated Mother's Day, it was huge. We made her breakfast in bed and did all the housework and made sure she was happy all day. We just spent time with her. We didn't have to buy anything extravagant."

"How did you do housework if you lived in a trailer?" Damian asked.

"Is that really all you took from that?" Dick whined.

"And I can't make Mother breakfast if she's across the world," Damian continued, "So she'll have to settle for this card."

Dick sighed, "Well, that isn't quite what I was going for, but I'll take it. What kind of card are you making her?"

Damian wordlessly held out the white piece of construction paper. On the inside, a drawing depicted two stick figures holding hands next to an upside-down stick figure splotched in the mysterious red substance from before with a sparkly bow drawn around it.

"The stick figures are myself and Mother," Damian told him, "And that is her present."

"Damian, you didn't actually send her a body, right?" Dick worried.

"Of course not. No airlines would willingly take a body to the Middle-East," Damian scoffed.

"Because that's the part I'm worried about," Dick muttered.

Damian finally looked up, "Was there something you wanted, Grayson?"

"I can't stop by for a visit?"

"It_ is_ unusual," Damian mused.

"Right. I'm looking for Bruce." Dick sighed.

Damian looked back down at his creation, "I don't know where Father is. You can go now."

Dick scratched his neck at the uninterested dismissal, "You know…it isn't that urgent. I can stay if you want."

"I don't care."

"Oh…well, then, I'll stay." Dick picked through the materials on the counter-top, pulling free a few pieces of construction paper. "And make Talia my own card."

Damian glanced up at him, "Dare I ask why?"

"Well, duh," Dick grinned, "If she wasn't a mother, I wouldn't have met you! I have to thank her for that!"

"How corny," Damian looked back down.

"Oh, don't be shy. I know you're blushing!"

For that comment, he received a push hard enough to send him to the floor.


	4. Independence Day

**Title: **Holidays With Damian** - **4th of July

**Rating:** G

**Character/Pairing:** Dick Grayson and Damian Wayne

**Notes**: _**pre-slash fluff**_, if there is such a thing. No romantic relationship at this point. Sorry for the shortness but I'm leaving tomorrow morning and I whipped it up at 11:45.

**Word Count:** 408

**Summary:** It's not like Dick remembers, but it's nice to see Damian try.

* * *

Damian followed Dick down the stairs of the mansion, still unsure of what the older man was doing. There was a bag full of something slung over Dick's back and they were tromping through the front lawn towards the area that Dick had been setting up this 'surprise' all evening. Now that it was finally dark outside, and they were somehow not on patrol (Damian suspected Drake and bribes were involved), Dick had asked Damian to come with him.

"If Father knew I was out here rather than on patrol, Grayson-"

"Damian, think of this as your night off, okay?" Dick called back, "Besides, I'm sure he'll know sooner or later."

Damian didn't reply until they were standing around an average sized stand in the middle of the yard. "What is this?"

"The surprise! We're shooting off fireworks!"

Damian blinked, "What?"

"Fireworks? You know, big, bright, sparkly celebratory symbols for the 4th of July?"

"I know what they are, Grayson," Damian frowns, "I meant _why _are we shooting off fireworks?"

"Do you want the simple answer or the one where I tie in all of my reasons to the traditional value of the holiday? Because we've done this before."

"Simple," Damian said.

"It's the 4th of July!"

Damian sighed, "I suppose it's pointless to persuade you otherwise."

"Yep!" Dick chirped.

Damian blinked and turned his attention to the stand, "Do you even know how to set off fireworks?"

"Yeah. I used to take Jason out here every 4th when he was Robin."

"So a grand total of what, three years?"

"_Damian!_"

Damian sat in the grass as Dick set down the sack, "I have small ones, big ones, weeping willows, the thing from Lord of the Rings…" Dick trailed off to see if Damian was listening. Damian didn't react.

A sudden burst of color in the otherwise black sky caught Dick's attention and he looked up. Fireworks could be seen going up in steady succession from the Gotham skyline. "Huh. Usually Gotham's fireworks aren't big enough for us to see from here."

Damian laid back in the grass, ignoring him yet again.

Dick looked between the fireworks already going and the ones from Gotham. Eventually he sat down at Damian's side.

"They're pretty, right?"

"_tt._"

Dick sighed.

"They're adequate."

Dick was silent for a while, watching as a firework burst in the sky and shimmered down. He laid down beside Damian, breathing the hot, summer air. "…thanks, Damian."


	5. Labor Day

**Title:** Observance

**Rating:** G

**Character/Pairing:** Dick Grayson and Damian Wayne

**Notes:** pre-slash fluff, if there is such a thing. No romantic relationship at this point.

**Word Count:** 891

**Summary:** Bruce finally takes a holiday and stumbles upon something almost touching.

* * *

"Might I suggest taking a break Master Bruce?"

Bruce tapped his pen on the surface of the desk. The quiet of the office, the entire manor really, had been nagging at him for a good hour now. He'd woken up on the early side to get some side projects signed and out of the way so he could use the day to relax before patrol later. By now, more of the household should have been up and making noise. It was almost eerie how silent the manor was.

"Maybe I will," Bruce told Alfred, "Do you know where-"

"Master Timothy is visiting Mr. Kent in Smallville today," Alfred didn't have to wait for Bruce to finish his question, "and I believe Master Damian has a guest."

"Damian has a guest?" Bruce asked, setting the pen down. What little he actually knew about his son suggested that Damian didn't make friends easily. "Who?"

"Master Richard dropped by to see him."

Bruce shouldn't have been surprised. Dick was the only one who seemed to know how to deal with the newest addition to the family. Their time as Batman and Robin had given them a bond that Bruce would admit he was grateful for at times.

Bruce stood, straightening his shirt, "I'll go see what they're up to."

"Very good, sir." Bruce couldn't tell if Alfred was being sarcastic or genuine.

:::

Bruce found the two in the study on the second floor. He didn't enter the room, choosing to hang back and observe from the doorway. Damian was lying on the carpet with an open book appearing only half focused. Dick was lying across from him, chin resting on one fist, the other hand alternating between covering Damian's pages and drumming on the carpet.

"Come on Dami, don't spend all day here."

"If this is another one of your misguided attempts to familiarize me with American holidays I am not interested."

"It's Labor day, Damian! The whole point is to stop doing work!" Dick attempted to close the book lightly on Damian fingers. The younger Bat pulled his book out of reach just in time.

"So stop pestering me and go relax with someone who cares." Damian replied tersely.

"Why are you mad?"

"I am not angry. You annoy me."

Dick blew out a sigh, "You're mad about something. Did Bruce say something?"

Bruce felt a twinge of guilt mixed with confusion. While it was true he and Damian never saw eye to eye, he didn't think Dick had always blamed him for it. He thought the general consensus of the family was that Damian was the one with the attitude problem.

"Hardly."

"Damian," Dick drew out his name, prompting him to respond.

Damian was silent for a moment before closing his book, "Fine. Father took Drake to some exhibit last week. They spent the day together 'bonding' and it was stupid."

Dick hummed, "Which means you wanted to go. Why didn't you ask?"

"As if I would be allowed to attend their 'father-son' time." Damian folded his arms on the carpet.

"Well if you don't ask you never know." Dick smiled, "but you could always hang out with me when they go out."

"You do it to. Spend time with Drake and call it bonding." Damian sounded bitter to Bruce's ears.

"Well yeah, Timmy and I spend time together because he wants to." Dick nodded. "You don't have to be jealous."

"I am not-!"

"I_ mean_ you don't have to be jealous that I like spending time with Tim because I like spending time with you too." Dick interrupted. "Why do you think I came over today?"

Damian retained his frown.

"Oh, stop scowling. I know you're happy to see me." Dick grinned.

To Bruce's surprise, Damian's scowl faded to a passive line. For Damian, it was nearly a smile.

"As I was trying to explain earlier, Labor day is-"

"A holiday to celebrate contribution workers make to society. It's the figurative last day of summer and most schools take a weekend break or don't start until after. Nearly every establishment aside from fast food and super centers are closed."

Dick smiled, "Basically. So what do you want to do?"

"Nothing," Damian pulled his book back towards himself.

"I thought you wanted to see that new movie," Dick didn't ask, "I might have already gotten tickets."

Damian held Dick's eyes for a few moments, "Have you?"

"No but it's not exactly hard to get them," Dick laughed. "Come on, come see it with me. Please? We can go to the parade afterwards, or go to one of the fairs around town."

Damian relented quicker than Bruce expected, "Fine."

"Yeah?"

"_Fine_!" Damian repeated. He pushed off the ground and headed towards the door, "I'll wait outside."

Bruce meant to move before Damian passed but he's pinned by his son's glance, "Father." Damian walked around him and down the hallway. Dick stood at his side a few seconds later. "Bruce."

"Dic-"

Dick held up a hand, "Don't thank me. I do like spending time with Damian. He's a lot of fun once you get him away from the Manor."

"…right."

"Maybe you could give hanging out with him a shot, huh?" Dick grinned before following Damian down the hall.

Bruce might have agreed but he knew not to recognize that as an invitation.


	6. Halloween

**Title: **Admiration

**Rating: **T

**Character/Pairing: **Dick Grayson and Damian Wayne

**Notes: **pre-slash fluff, if there is such a thing. No romantic relationship at this point. Wasn't sure how to end this one so I decided to write a longer Halloween fic too and upload that later.

**Word Count: **843

**Summary:** Damian knows more about Halloween than Dick expects.

* * *

"You aren't celebrating Halloween?"

Dick looked up from the engine of his bike, surprised to find Damian a few feet from him. He hadn't even heard the boy approach. "What?"

"Halloween," Damian repeated, "Drake says you don't celebrate it."

"Oh. No, I don't." Dick replied.

"Why? As I understand it, Halloween would be the holiday that you appreciate most. You go door to door and beg candy off of strangers."

"Nice to know that's your opinion of me," Dick muttered. Louder, he said, "In my experience, a nasty villain always picks Halloween to go crazy on the city. It gets worse every year, so I just stopped caring about the holiday aspect and started focusing on the saving the city aspect."

"No Halloween, only justice?" Damian asked.

"Did you just make a joke?"

Damian ignored the question, "So you will not be attending my father's party?"

"Well, it isn't Bruce's party, it's Oliver Queen's idea using Bruce's building." Dick went back to tinkering, "I haven't decided if I'm going yet."

Dick worked for the next few minutes in silence before he realized Damian hadn't replied. He looked up, only partially surprised to see that the boy was gone. Dick set down his tools, pondering over the reason of Damian's impromptu conversation. All at once it hit him. Damian had probably never celebrated Halloween before.

Well, Dick would be damned if he let that slide.

:::

The following morning, Dick found Damian sprawled out on the couch in Bruce's second study, by all appearances trying to take a nap. He sat on the arm of the couch opposite of Damian's head and squeezed the arch of Damian's foot to get his attention.

Damian's eyes snapped open and he jerked his foot out of Dick's grip. He scowled at the older man, "What?"

"Do you want to go costume shopping with me?"

"I thought you weren't celebrating," Damian closed his eyes and moved further up the couch.

"I changed my mind." Dick shrugged, "So?"

"I already have a costume. Go by yourself."

"Wait, you have a costume?"

"Drake informed me weeks ago that for my age, dressing up as someone you want to be is appropriate, which is why so many young females dress up as Disney princesses."

"I don't think anyone could sound more patronizing about Halloween than you." Dick sighed, "I guess you're wearing a Batman costume then?"

"No," Damian rejected, "Are you coming to Queen's party?"

"Well I'm a little old for Trick or Treating," Dick teased.

Damian shrugged and Dick wondered if he understood it was a jibe.

"Well, have you carved a pumpkin? Or gone to a Haunted House? Or taken a hay ride?"

"No," Damian closed his eyes again.

"Do you want to?"

"No," Damian repeated.

Dick sat awkwardly for a moment before relenting, "Okay, okay. I'll see you at Ollie's thing, then." He wondered if he was wrong about Damian wanting Dick to teach him about the holiday.

Damian didn't respond as he curled further into the couch, done with their talk.

Dick sighed, standing from the couch and leaving Damian to his rest.

:::

"A cop? _Really_?"

"Shut up, Babs. You're one to talk. Sexy librarian?"

The former couple exchanged incredulous looks before they broke into laughter. Dick lowered his police hat by a fraction and adjusted his belt. Barbara leaned back in her chair and raised an eyebrow behind her thin glasses. "Seen Tim?"

"No, why?"

"He and Kid Flash switched uniforms for the party. They're going as each other."

"Tim in a speedster outfit?" Dick tilted his head, "Hard to imagine."

"Harder to imagine Kid Flash as Robin," Barbara corrected.

"Have you seen Damian?" Dick asked.

"He was here earlier. He was actually kind of cute, dare I say it." Barbara shook her head, "If you know the story behind it, that is."

"Behind what?" Dick was a little upset that Damian apparently left considering the reason he was at the party in the first place was to see that Damian had a decent first Halloween.

"His costume. Tim told him that little boys dressed up as their role models for Halloween, hence the cowboys and sheriffs and Superboys, etcetera."

"Yeah, I asked if he was going to be Batman but he said no."

"Well, of course. Batman isn't his role model. Batman is the title he wants when he's older but he doesn't want to be _like_ Bruce, at least not anymore."

"…so who was he?"

"You blind idiot," Barbara sighed fondly, "He was _you_."

"He was _me_?" Dick gaped.

"He was Nightwing," Barbara clarified.

"He wants to be like me? I'm his role model?"

"Apparently so," Barbara nodded. "If you want to go find him, he and that Colin kid are taking Lian Harper T-or-T-ing on 4th."

"Yeah, I suddenly got the urge to hug him to death," Dick glanced around the party, "Tell Bruce I said cool party but I have to go bestow affection on his son."

"I'll do that," Barbara said dryly as Dick turned and ran out of the room.


	7. Thanksgiving

**Verse: **Holidays with Damian - Thanksgiving

**Rating: **T

**Character/Pairing: **Dick Grayson and Damian Wayne

**Notes: **pre-slash fluff, if there is such a thing. No romantic relationship at this point.

**Word Count: **426

**Summary:** It's Damian's turn to not celebrate.

:::

The noise around the dinner table was near deafening as each member of the family tried to hold their own conversations. Clicks of silverware and glass added to the volume, causing Titus to swivel his head back and forth between the family where he lay on the rug. Damian could hear all of this from where he sat at the top of the stairs, alone save for the plate of food Alfred had brought him earlier.

Damian sighed, admittedly bored sitting on his own.

"Damian?"

He glanced up, catching sight of Grayson heading into the hall.

"Are you going to come eat with us?"

"Don't be ridiculous, Grayson. I don't celebrate thanksgiving."

Dick frowned, "…okay then."

Damian returned to eating, mulling over the melancholy thought that Batman might take the night off, meaning no patrol for Robin. He got half way through his mashed potatoes before Dick appeared again, this time loping up the steps and settling next to Damian with a plate of turkey in hand.

"What are you doing?"

"What does it look like?" Dick asked, "I'm eating with you."

"Go away," Damian made a face.

"Nah, I think I'll stay." Dick grinned. "I have to make sure you're getting the full Thanksgiving experience, right?"

"No."

"Oh, yes." Dick nodded, "You know, traditionally, people go around and say what they're thankful for on Thanksgiving. What are you thankful for?"

"I'll be thankful when this conversation ends."

"Dami…"

"I'm thankful for bataraangs. They make taking down criminals easier."

"You're completely missing the point." Dick sighed, "I mean sentimental things. For example, I'm thankful we're all getting along well enough to have Thanksgiving together."

"Except Todd."

"Well, Jason is a special case." Dick rubbed his chin, "I'm thankful that Bruce is back from the time stream."

"Not everyone feels that way."

"Damian!"

Damian shrugged uncaringly, "What? It's just an observation."

"Damian, you're being a little brat." Dick leaned back on the stairs. "Can't you say one thing you're thankful for and mean it?"

"If I do, will you leave me be?"

"Sure, if that's how you want to play it."

"Then I'm thankful for my dog, now leave me alone."

Dick frowned, disappointed. "Really? Okay, fine. Whatever." Dick stood, "Try to do something nice," He continued to grumble as he went back down the stairs, disappearing around the corner.

Damian stared after him, a slight frown etched across his face. "I suppose I'm thankful for you as well."

There was a moment of silence before Dick's head popped back around the corner, "What was that?"

"_Nothing_!"


End file.
